


A Trip to the Beach

by Blacksheep28, firedrakegirl



Series: Soft Horrortale and Others [5]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: AxE, Crooks - Freeform, Fluff, Gen, HorrorTale, Ocean, Star Gazing, beach
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:53:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22989649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blacksheep28/pseuds/Blacksheep28, https://archiveofourown.org/users/firedrakegirl/pseuds/firedrakegirl
Summary: Ora takes Sans and Papyrus out to the beach to look at the stars and play in the ocean.
Series: Soft Horrortale and Others [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1595434
Kudos: 33





	A Trip to the Beach

Getting everyone in the car had been a bit of a feat. Sans had volunteered to sit in the back with the blankets and telescope, while Papyrus happily sat up front. He had cheerfully blasted music the entire way there, dancing in the front seat and occasionally turning to beam back at his brother and Ora. This wasn't exactly what he had dreamed of Underground, but they were so far from what they had been Papyrus thought this drive was plenty good as a replacement. He had his brother here and a new friend after all.

As soon as Ora was parked Papyrus loped out of the car on all fours, cheerfully exploring the beach. It was a bit like snow, except it didn't compact when stepped on the way snow did. It just sank slowly, with sand filling in around his bones. Papyrus knew he should have been helping to set up, but he found himself just watching his hand as he studied how the sand fell.

Sans stepped out of the car and grabbed the telescope, cradling it gently. "...lead the way?"

Ora grabbed the blankets, tossing them over her shoulder. “Yessir!” She trotted down towards the water, then started walking parallel, looking for an area with minimal light pollution. Much easier during the off season. Sans trailed slowly after her, pausing briefly when he hit the sand. This was not easy to move on. He shifted his weight back and forth before finally moving forward again. 

"...telescope might...tip..."

“That’s why we have extra blankets. Plus, since the tide is on its way out, we can use the damp sand as a base,” Ora explained. Sans weighed that in his mind and nodded slowly. Ora knew how beaches worked better than he did. “You aright walking on the sand? It’s difficult when you’re unaccustomed to it.”

Sans pondered that over. "...it's very strange. like...the ground's moving...without me."

“If you want something like that, only moreso, stand at the edge of the waves. It’s really trippy, but a lot of fun.”

"...another time." He really wanted as much time star gazing as possible this time.

Papyrus loped over to join them. "THIS IS INCREDIBLE!"

“Well have to come back again when it’s warmer.” Ora grinned, finding the perfect spot and setting the blankets down. “Pass it here Sans?” She asked, offering to take the telescope. Sans passed the telescope over and looked up at the sky. The first stars were already starting to be visible as the sun set. Ora set it up, before pulling out her phone to look for the best angle at which to see things. “Who wants the first look?” She asked, once she finished.

"SANS CAN HAVE IT," Papyrus volunteered eagerly. Sans shrugged. He was torn. He really wanted to look...but he was so eager, he was almost afraid to do it.

“C’mon Sans.” Ora encouraged. “You think the view is good now? Look!” Sans slowly stepped over to the telescope and peered through. He gasped. The stars were so clear and sharp. He could see so much more, and it was absolutely breath taking. He had dreamed about it. He had looked at the stars a couple times from the house even, though it was nothing like this. This was magical. Papyrus smiled fondly at his brother. He was so happy Sans got to have one of his dreams come true. Ora sat at the edge of the blanket and smiled at them both. Seeing them both so happy made her happy. It was neat, seeing the things she took for granted through new eyes.

“What do you think?” She asked softly. Sans didn’t answer for the longest time. When he finally pulled back it was with the warmest smile she’d ever seen him give, a touch of wonder in his red eyelight. “it’s good.”

Her responding smile couldn’t have been warmer or wider. “I’m so glad.”

“MY TURN!” Papyrus happily crouched down to look through the telescope. Sans quietly rumbled to his brother how to use it. “WOW! THEY’RE BETTER THAN THE WISHING STONES!”

“The wishing stones?”

“...stones in waterfall that glowed. used them as stars.”

“WE WOULD MAKE WISHES ON THEM.”

“That sounds really pretty.” Ora admitted. She’d always had a thing for shiny rocks

“...not the same.”

“THEY ARE INCREDIBLE! LIKE MAGIC THAT DOESN’T FADE!”

“Not at all the same, but pretty in its own way?” She asked. Sans weighed it for a moment before nodding.

“OH YES! IT WAS ONE OF THE PRETTIEST PLACES UNDERGROUND!”

She looked up at the sky. “It’s Interesting. We compare the stars to stones up here, and there, you compared stones to stars. Even such different beings, we thought the same way.”

“...humans are funny.” Sans moved to look through the telescope again as Papyrus ducked back.

“IT’S TOO BAD YOU CAN’T TOUCH THE STARS,” Papyrus sighed.

“They’re balls of burning gas, Pap.” Ora laughed. “But there are ways. Rockets, or, oh! meteorites. The remnants of shooting stars. There are probably some at the please touch museum.” She realized. “We can do that one day.”

Papyrus blinked. “BALLS OF BURNING GAS?”

“...fart,” Sans added.

She stared at Sans for a moment, before cracking up. “Sans! We aren’t setting farts on fire!” She giggled.

“NYEH! I HIGHLY DOUBT STARS ARE BURNING FARTS SANS!” Papyrus scolded.

“...burning gas,” Sans countered, grinning widely. She flopped against the blankets, still giggling wildly. Two skeletons discussing if stars were burning farts. How was this her life? Papyrus continued the argument with Sans, his brother countering with a few words here and there and with a giant grin on his face the entire time. Papyrus huffed and threw a fuss, but really seemed to be enjoying himself. Watching the brotherly banter made Ora very happy. Seeing the two of them acting like this just thrilled her to the core. She was amazed at how they adapted and handled everything thrown at them. After a few minutes, she stood and walked over to give papyrus a one armed hug while offering the other to Sans. Papyrus happily squeezed them both in the hug, Sans slower to relax and hug back. "...thank you."

“You guys are amazing.” Ora said with a grin. “Never forget that.”

"YOU ARE JUST AS AMAZING," Papyrus said enthusiastically. "YOU GIVE US SO MUCH! YOU EVEN BROUGHT US HERE TO LET SANS SEE THE STARS!"

“That’s just basic decency!” She disagreed. “You should be so used to the Stars that you take them for granted, just like humans. The fact that you were locked away underground just...ugh!”

"...it's how things are," Sans said. He touched the telescope. "can't make...promises."

“If I make promises, especially to you two, I’m gonna do my damnedest to keep them. You deserve better.” She assured them.

"...don't."

Papyrus frowned in concern at his brother. "WHAT IS IT SANS?"

"...promises...just get broken."

“...I’ll keep that in mind. No promises.” She agreed. Who had hurt him so badly? She’d beat them to a pulp for him, even knowing she wouldn’t win.

"OH." Papyrus shook his head. That was right. Sans had told him about the promise to Toriel, and Frisk's promise to not reset. Well, Frisk had kept that promise. Just in the worst way possible. Sans turned back to the telescope and gazing up at the stars.

“I’m not gonna push, but if either of you want to talk, you can. I don’t judge.”

Funny, he used to say that too. It was a lie. It was his job to judge. But he still told people he wasn't gonna judge whatever they did.

"WHY IS THE SAND SO WEIRD?" Papyrus asked.

“I...don’t actually know.” She thought about it. “Weird in what way?”

"IT KEEPS SHIFTING UNDER US."

“Well, it’s tons of tiny flecks. The dryer it is the more it moves. You should try walking down near the water. It’s much firmer but still moves. Sand is weird.” Papyrus decided to go to experimenting with walking on the sand while his brother got lost staring up at the stars. Ora decided to sit back down and look up at the stars, occasionally watching Papyrus. Maybe she should show him the wonder of sandcastles.

Papyrus came back after a bit, rubbing at his shorts. "I DON'T UNDERSTAND. I DIDN'T SIT DOWN. HOW IS THERE SAND THERE?"

She giggled. “It’s sand. It gets everywhere.”

"WHAT?"

"...hehehe." Sans stepped back and laid down off the blanket in the sand.

"SANS! STAND BACK UP! YOU'LL GET SAND EVERYWHERE!"

“Oh boy.” She laughed, and scooped a handful of sand over Sans’ legs. “You’re sitting on a towel on the way back to the condo.” Sans grinned at Ora completely unrepentantly.

“Troublemaker.” She beamed at him.

"HE IS NOT SITTING NEXT TO ME ON THE WAY BACK," Papyrus pointed out firmly.

"You can have shotgun." She grinned. "It's fine. We don't have far to go."

"GOOD."

"...can stay for longer right?" He wasn't quite done watching the stars yet.

“Of course! We can stay as long as you guys want!” She assured them. “This is one of those rare beaches that doesn’t have a curfew, so we can stay til the sun rises if that’s what you want.”

"...you'd do that?"

“Stay til sunrise? Of course! Tonight is about you guys getting to see the stars. That lasts as long as you want.” Sans turned his head and looked up to the stars. He would take this chance. He didn't know how long it would last, and was more than happy for it. “Are you enjoying yourself Pap?” Ora asked, looking at the taller skele.

"I AM INDEED! THIS PLACE IS VERY DIFFERENT AND INTERESTING TO INVESTIGATE!"

“It is. We’ll have to come back when it’s warmer and do the frolicking thing.” She agreed. “Maybe make some sandcastles and whatnot. Unless you want to try making them in the dark?”

“I HAVE EXCELLENT VISION! BUT I DO NOT BELIEVE YOU SHARE IT.”

"I do not, but I'd be willing to try. Who knows, could be fun."

Papyrus nodded. “ALRIGHT THEN. SHOW ME.”

"You got it!" She stood, stretching. "You gonna be alright here Sans? We won't be far." Sans turned his dim red eye light towards Ora, studying her for a long moment, before nodding. He was going to take in as much of the stars as he could before he lost them again.

Papyrus grinned widely, crooked teeth scraping slightly. “SO HOW DOES ONE MANAGE A SAND CASTLE WHEN THE SAND IS SO SLIPPERY?

Ora grinned at Sans then beckoned Papyrus to follow her onto the firmer sand near the water. Luckily, the stars were bright enough to provide some light. Hopefully she wouldn't fall and crush the castle. "Normally, we'd have a bucket or something to use to pack the sand, but I didn't think about it, so I don't have one. We're gonna have to improvise." She sat down on the damp sand and started digging with her hands. "Let's get some of this loose to work with." Papyrus settled cautiously on the wet sand. He poked at it, watching as the shape stayed this time. He grinned widely and began to dig rapidly with his large hands, the wet sand quickly beginning to get into his joints and turn his hands brown. The hole he dug looked like it had been carved by a beast with clawed edges around it.

"Oh! Nice! We have lots of sand now!" She grinned. "Let's start shaping it, okay?" She pulled some into a pile and started trying to form firm walls.

“OH. JUST LIKE SHAPING SNOW!” He knew what he was doing now. He moved with almost expert ease, only to be surprised when the sand started to crack.

Ora laughed, quickly added some more Sand around the cracks. “Yeah, it’s a lot like snow, but heavier. We’re gonna need some water.” Why hadn’t she thought about buying some beach toys? She pulled off her T-shirt, leaving her in a blue tank top that was more revealing than she’d like. “I’m gonna go soak this in the water so we can solidify the structure.” She grinned. “Be right back!” She dashed off, barely avoiding falling into the hole Pap had made. It had been years since she’d built sandcastles, and even longer since she’d been this excited about it. She shivered as the frigid water washed over her feet as she dunked the shirt. As soon as it was soaked, she hurried back to Papyrus. “This should make it easier to build...use water to fix cracks and holes.” She was so focused on what she was doing that she missed the shadow of the hole he’d dug, and managed to fall into it with a startled squeak.

"ORA!" Papyrus quickly raced over. Sans sat up, moving more quickly than he ever had around her, red eyelight glowing hotly. Papyrus fluttered around Ora. "IS SHE DEAD? IS SHE HURT? OH NO!"

Ora sat up with a groan and spat out a mouthful of sand. “Note to self...don’t fall in holes.”

"ORA!" Papyrus picked her up, and raced back to where they'd set up to watch the stars. He very gently put her down. "WHAT BROKE?"

“Nothing, nothing at all. I’m fine hun.” She clung to him as he ran. “Really. I’m a klutz. This happens.”

"BUT YOU FELL! AND HUMANS GET HURT WHEN THEY DO!" Images of all the humans falling into his puzzles (traps, they were traps, not fair) flashed through his mind. Sans looked at Ora steadily, a flat grin on his face.

“Look. I’m fine.” She stood and did a little twirl. “I might have a bruise or two, but that’s it.”

"YOU'RE...YOU'RE REALLY FINE?"

“Yes. Is there something I can do to prove it?” She looked between the both of them.

Sans quietly ran a Check on Ora. "...she's fine."

Papyrus pulled Ora into a crushing hug. "OH, I'M SO GLAD."

Ora hugged him back tightly. “It’s gonna take a lot more than a fall to really hurt me.” She looked at Sans. “Do you need a hug too?” Sans shrugged, while Papyrus continued to hold onto Ora. He was so glad this human wasn't hurt. “Cmere Sans. Join the hug.” Sans stared for a long moment. Papyrus looked pleadingly at his brother, and he came over to hug both of them.

Ora wrapped an arm around him. “It’s all good. Promise. I may get hurt a lot, but it takes a lot to actually damage me. Just because this is the first time you’ve seen me manage to faceplant, doesn’t mean it’s the last. I’ll be sure to let you know if I’m actually damaged, okay?”

"OKAY." Sans looked a lot more dubious about that, but nodded.

“You don’t believe me Sans?” She asked, frowning slightly.

"...don't know each other," Sans pointed out. It hadn't even quite been a full week yet.

“You know, that’s fair. Here, let me show you.” She stepped away slightly from Papyrus and pulled off her hoodie and shirt, doing another little twirl. Her skin quickly broke out in goosebumps from the breeze coming off the ocean, but she ignored it. “Want me to take my pants off too?”

"NO!" Papyrus frowned. "DON'T HUMANS...HM, DOESN'T SOMETHING HAPPEN WHEN HUMANS GET EXPOSED?"

Sans considered it. "...dunno."

“I mean, if I leave them off for an extended period I might get windburn or something. I don’t think it’s cold enough for hypothermia.”

"WIND CAN BURN HUMANS?"

“It can kick up the sand and cause abrasions in this situation. The wind itself can’t hurt, but the tiny particles caught in it can.”

"HUMANS GET HURT SO EASILY." Attacking them with magic didn't work so well, but physical injury? They were a lot more prone to that than monsters were.

“We can. It’s weird.” She nodded and shivered. “Okay, do you mind if I put my shirt back on? I’m starting to get a little chilly.”

"OH, OF COURSE YOU CAN!" Papyrus shook his head. "YOU DIDN'T NEED TO TAKE IT OFF IF IT WOULD HURT YOU."

"...yeah."

“It’s not gonna hurt me. I wouldn’t have taken it off if it would. If I stayed out here without it all night, then maybe. But I wanted to show you that I’m fine.”

"ALRIGHT, WE BELIEVE YOU."

“Thanks.” She smiled at them and pulled her clothes back on. “I’m not used to being in the beach when it’s so cold.”

"IS IT?" Papyrus looked around in surprise. "I THOUGHT THIS WAS NICE."

“It is, just a little chillier than most humans enjoy.” She shrugged. “I like the cold.”

“OKAY.” Papyrus beamed.

“...join me?” Sans asked.

Ora grinned at both of them. “Oh! Sure Sans!” Sans shifted so there was room for Ora beside him as Papyrus went back to poking at the partial sans castle. Ora sat next to him and looked up at the stars, content. “You guys are great, didja know that?” She asked idly.

“NYEH HEH HEH! THANKS!” Papyrus beamed over at Ora. Sans chuckled and patted her head. She smiled and bumped Sans gently with her shoulder, stifling a yawn.

The night passed. Papyrus slowly practiced his sand sculpting, a nice if odd castle done by the time the sun began to rise. Sans sighed in contentment as he watched the stars fade and the sun rise. At some point through the night, Ora had laid down on the blanket and sometime after that, she'd fallen asleep completely.

Papyrus wandered over and patted Ora. “HEY. THE SUN’S COMING UP.” She rolled over, into Sans, but didn't wake. “ORA.” Papyrus shook her.

"mhm....m awake...."

Papyrus smiled. She sounded so much like Sans used to. “IT’S TIME TO GO HOME ORA.” He gently picked her up and Sans started taking things apart to pack back up.

Ora curled into his grasp. "no...gotta stay so sans can see the stars."

“...sun is up,” Sans assured her. “stayed long.”

She finally opened her eyes a smidge. "Oh...did you have fun?" She started rubbing at her eyes, trying to wake up a little more.

“...yes.”

“I MADE A CASTLE,” Papyrus enthused.

"That's great." She grinned at both of them. "And how was the sunrise over the ocean?"

Both of the skeletons slowed, Sans looking back behind them. “IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.”

She looked over Papyrus' shoulder to see the clear water and skies. "I love seeing the sun on the water." She sighed happily.

“IT IS VERY PRETTY. I LOVE HOW IT SHIMMERS.” Papyrus grinned. Sans nodded his head in agreement, choosing to skip talking. They reached the car and packed up, only to hesitate. “ORA, ARE YOU OKAY TO DRIVE?” Papyrus hugged Ora in his arms. She seemed so cuddly like this.

“Yeah. I’m good.” She assured as she hugged him back. “We don’t have far to go to the condo.”

“OKAY.” Papyrus reluctantly put Ora down and climbed into the passenger seat while Sans relaxed in the back. She climbed into the car and started it, pulling out of the spot smoothly. It was barely ten minutes before she was parking again. “We’re on the 5th floor.” She got out and stretched before turning to gather the items they’d brought with them. She was a touch too slow. Sans already had everything. He grinned at Ora. She shook her head with a smile. “Alright. Follow me. Five flights of stairs. Ick.” She unlocked the front door with a key and held it open for the two of them. Papyrus beamed at his brother. He was helping out without being asked or bagged into it! The night at the beach had really put Sans in a good mood. The skeletons happily followed after Ora, Papyrus struggling not to drop onto all fours. He didn’t need that here.

She lead them up the five flights, definitely out of breath by the end, but smiled as she opened the door to the small condo. “Bathroom through there if you wanna wash the sand off. I’ll get breakfast started.”

“THANK GOODNESS.” Papyrus hurried to the bathroom, eager to be freed from the sand. Sans just put the stuff down and sat lazily on the couch.

Or a chuckled. “What do you want for breakfast sans.“

“...food.”

She facepalmed with a grin. “Obviously. What kind? Want actual breakfast stuff or dinner type stuff? Something else?”

“...the left mac n cheese casserole?”

"Yeah, I brought that. I'll get it heating up." She smiled. "You gonna shower when Pap is done?"

“...maybe.” Sans grinned humorously.

“You’re shedding sand everywhere hun.” She laughed. “You don’t want it caught in your joints, right?”

“...could take effort,” Sans half protested.

“Yeah, but it’ll feel better once it’s gone. Gets itchy after a while.”

“...fine.” Sans grinned playfully at Ora.

She smirked at him. “Oh good. If you didn’t agree I was gonna make you vacuum all the sand you shed.” She teased.

“...the horror. please. not that.”

“Yes, the horror! The terror!” She flailed dramatically. Sans chuckled from where he was laying down, watching Ora warm up the leftovers. The oven in the condo wasn’t the greatest, but it would suffice to warm up the food as long as she kept an eye on it. She smiled at Sans’ chuckled though.

When the food was just about ready Papyrus finally came out of the bathroom, carefully toweled off and wearing pajamas that were just a hint too short. “YOUR TURN SANS.” Sans jolted from where he’d fallen asleep, and looked around. “SANS!” Papyrus moved closer. “IT’S YOUR TURN TO SHOWER.”

“...ok.”

Ora chuckled. "Mornin Sans. Gonna go get rid of the sand?"

Sans nodded and headed off to the bathroom. Papyrus shuffled over to the kitchen. “SMELLS GOOD!”

"Your mac casserole." She grinned. "Glad to be clean?"

“VERY MUCH SO! I FEEL MUCH BETTER NOW.” Papyrus beamed at Ora. “YOU SHOULD TAKE A SHOWER AFTER SANS.”

"I plan to. Sand gets itchy after a while. Having skin sucks sometimes." She nodded.

Papyrus served himself some of the casserole and dug in, munching it happily.

She put a serving on a plate for Sans, then took a much smaller portion for herself. She was a little too tired to be super hungry yet.

Papyrus checked the time occasionally as they ate, standing up after half an hour. “LAZYBONES. I’LL GRAB HIM.” He lumbered towards the bathroom.

She laughed. "He had more sand on him. Might just be taking longer." She pointed out.

Papyrus shook his head. “NO, HE’S JUST BEING SLOW.” Papyrus pushed down the worry that Sans was having problems with his skull.

"Alright. Lemme know if he needs help then?" She asked. Papyrus hesitated. He wasn’t sure if he should let Ora in on something so intimate. "If you're comfortable with it of course." She assured him.

“ALRIGHT,” Papyrus said. He opened the bathroom and stepped in. Sans was washing, but sure enough he was struggling with keeping the water out of his skull. Papyrus poked his head out. “DO YOU HAVE A SHOWER CAP?”

Ora thought for a moment. "Check the medicine cabinet. Should be one in there."

Papyrus poked around and found an old one. “PERFECT!” He returned to his brother. “HERE.”

Sans put it on cautiously. “...think it’ll work?”

“WELL, MAYBE REINFORCE IT A BIT.” A few minutes later the pair came out of the bathroom and Papyrus sat down to finish eating.

"Good shower Sans?" Ora asked, not with the intention to pry.

"...yeah." Sans nodded at Ora and sat down heavily. He grabbed his serving and dug in.

"Good. I'm gonna go grab my shower real quick. Sleeping on the beach leaves one with a lot of sand in their hair."

Papyrus looked at Ora's hair a touch wistfully. "OKAY."

She noticed his look. "What?"

Papyrus's eyelights shrank. "I JUST LIKE YOUR HAIR."

"Thanks! You're welcome to touch or play with it whenever." She offered before pausing. Was that weird? Was it offensive or anything?

Papyrus lit up. "THAT WOULD BE GREAT!"

"Except maybe right now...it's kind of gross and sandy. Lemme wash it and you're welcome to it." She offered.

"NYEH HEH HEH! OF COURSE!"

She grinned and made her way to the bathroom.

Sans sighed contentedly. He had been able to watch the stars all night. Papyrus had had a great time. And even their human friend seemed good. Yeah, being here was weird. But he was pretty alright with where they were right now.


End file.
